If Congress wants meaningful health care reform, its leaders must stop rushing to pass a bill and hold legislative hearings to air the pros and cons of specific proposals, U.S. Sen. Jim Webb said Thursday.

"My thought right now is to slow this down," the Virginia Democrat said. "Open it up. Have some hearings. Let people get their different viewpoints out in a very public way."

The problems today with angry people shouting at each other during community forums around the country and the confusion over what might be included in any health care overhaul have their roots in the Obama administration's failure to present a specific framework for reforms, he said.

Instead, the president has left to Congress the task of creating a proposal.

"We've got five different committees bubbling up legislation, and it's all supposed to come together," Webb said, but none of the panels have had Washington hearings in recent months.

While some of the issues with health care have been talked about for years, he said, there should be new hearings on specific proposals.

"By not having these hearings, I think we have encouraged the type of frustrated environment that's out there," Webb said during a meeting with The Virginian-Pilot's editorial board. The senator also spoke about the issue at a private Chamber of Commerce meeting in Norfolk.

"There's a lot of worry out there - a legitimate worry out there - that the government is going to stuff something down their throat in terms of the nature of the care they're going to receive," he said.

Webb has not scheduled any town hall gatherings with constituents to discuss health care because he doesn't believe they're necessary.

"We listen constantly. I don't need to go to a town hall meeting and have a thousand people screaming to say that we've been able to listen to them," he said. "We've responded to 34,000 pieces of mail and e-mail in our office on this issue."

Webb has said he favors overhauling health care to deal with rising prices and to provide coverage for people who are unable to get insurance. He has been supportive of a government insurance plan to compete with private insurance if it can lead to lower costs by competitive pricing.

He restated his desire to examine other systems as possible models for overhauling health care, including the Department of Veterans Affairs. Webb, who recently returned from a multi nation trip to Asia, said the United States also should take a harder look at health systems in Singapore and Switzerland.

Congress is scheduled to resume consideration of health care legislation when it returns Sept. 8 after a month long recess.

It heated up, because people who read HB3200 broke into a sweat reading it, then became beet=red woth rage as to the plain reading of this “dung heap” (tip-o-the-hat to Sen Tom “Dung Heap” Harkin for popularizing the term “dung heap”).

“My thought right now is to slow this down,” the Virginia Democrat said. “Open it up. Have some hearings. Let people get their different viewpoints out in a very public way.”

I am betting those hearings will be as fruitful and public as Obama’s pledge in 2008:

“During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama said several times that he intended to negotiate health care reform publicly. In fact, he said, he’d televise the negotiations on C-SPAN, with all the parties sitting at a big table. That way, Americans would be more engaged in the process and insist on real change.
“That’s what I will do in bringing all parties together, not negotiating behind closed doors, but bringing all parties together, and broadcasting those negotiations on C-SPAN so that the American people can see what the choices are, because part of what we have to do is enlist the American people in this process,” Obama said at a debate in Los Angeles on Jan. 31, 2008.” — Politifact, Updated July 10, 2009

Translation.....
We must retreat to a position that we can defend. We are getting our butt whipped and the casualties are too great. The enemy has broken our lines and we must get the hell out of here ASAP

He has been supportive of a government insurance plan to compete with private insurance if it can lead to lower costs by competitive pricing...Webb, who recently returned from a multi nation trip to Asia, said the United States also should take a harder look at health systems in Singapore and Switzerland.

Switzerland and Singapore don't have a government insurance plan. How can Webb be for the government option and say we should look at those couintries? Typical politician trying to have it both ways.

“My thought right now is to slow this down,” the Virginia Democrat said. “Open it up. Have some hearings. Let people get their different viewpoints out in a very public way.”

OK... include tort reform and GET ILLEGALS/UNDOCUMENTED OUT OF THE SYSTEM.... then just watch the temperature fall !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Allow me to translate for this rude clown who does not belong in the Senate:

“Obamacare is killing the Democrat party. We need to do this piecemeal or sneak it in under the radar as much as possible. I want my party to continue to have complete control of the Congress and White House and Judiciary, so we need to pretend like we give a damn about what the American people think.”

Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.